PDS shops to have electronic machines to check pilferage

CHANDIGARH : To cut pilferage in the public distribution system (PDS), the Punjab food and civil supplies department is in the process of acquiring biometric system-based point of sale (PoS) machines in all fair price shops across the state.

The machines are handheld devices which will allow Aadhaar authentication at the moment of distribution, ensuring that beneficiaries receive their allocated ration, a government spokesperson said.

The machine also has a scale, which will ensure that the beneficiary receives their full amount of ration.

Besides, these machines allow real time location information, allowing the department to track the movement of foodgrains from godowns to the receipt of ration beneficiary at the point of sale, the spokesperson said.

All such information allows for greater transparency and accountability in the scheme, effectively eliminating the chances of pilferage, and increasing the management capability of the department, he said.

All fair price shops will be equipped with PoS terminals for the purpose of authenticating and verifying beneficiaries before commodity distribution, he said, adding that a crucial feature of the process is that the closing balances were updated in database through all PoS transaction from fair price shops.

PoS terminal comes with in-built fingerprint scanner designed for the PDS and all Aadhaar-based

transactions, the spokesperson said.

It was based on charge coupled device (CCD) fingerprint and comes with connectivity options like GSM/GPRS, CDMA and Ethernet, he said.

Apart from this, the PoS supports interfaces with all types of payment gateways and Aadhaar server with related logical interfaces for magnetic stripe reader and smart card reader for Aadhaar authentication.

The spokesperson said that it would reduce diversion, besides ensuring transparency in the movement of wheat from de-centralised procurement (DCP) godown to the point of sale that will help citizens.